Few pieces of legislation can have had such an impact on Scotland’s children as the Education (Scotland) Act 1872. To mark the 150th anniversary of this transformative act High Life Highland’s Highland Archive Service has created a brand-new online exhibition now available at https://www.highlifehighland.com/archives-service/educationexhibition/.
Photograph of Central School 1901; Credit: Highland Archive Centre
Following on from the 1870 Education Act in England & Wales, the Education (Scotland) Act 1872 was to revolutionise the education system in Scotland, making provision for a Board of Education for Scotland and the establishment of local school boards across the country. This was the moment that education became compulsory for children aged 5 to 13 years old, the training of teachers went into overdrive, hundreds of new school buildings were erected, and thousands of admission registers and school logbooks were generated as record-keeping was standardised.
To mark the 150th anniversary of this transformative act join the Highland Archive through the online exhibition to learn how the act came about, why it was needed, what it meant for our young people, and what the records it generated can tell us about teachers, subjects, holidays, discipline, and other subjects.
Delve into the Highland Archive Service collections to learn about the benefits the Education (Scotland) Act brought, the problems it created, and the legacy we’re all still living with.
The exhibition can be viewed at https://www.highlifehighland.com/archives-service/educationexhibition/. The original material used to create the exhibition was sourced from the four High Life Highland archive centres in Inverness, Wick, Fort William and Portree. To view any of the original documents please visit the relevant archive centre as detailed in the exhibition captions.
Photograph of Wick Academy Violin Class June, 1937; Credit: Nucleus: The Nuclear and Caithness Archives
Teachers at Fort William Higher Grade School, 1911; Credit: Lochaber Archive Centre
